Fair enough, you do have a battle axe.
So we are supposed to start up on monday.
I guess we start out with the arcanists at the school and Faidh out in the boondocks. I will narrate different environments at once. That should be fine.
Albion have you checked out the other PC’s?
I'll open a gameplay soon so we can dot and start getting notifications.
Albion, here's the gods, if you scroll way down the dwarf pantheons are there under non-human.
Dwerfater is a LG one with Earth, Good, Strength, Creation.
Strym is a NG with Good, Liberation, Protection, Strength, War
Strym has also been adopted into the human pantheon of the Hyperboreans and Foerdewaith.
Let me know if you need lore, they ended up making a big setting book since the days we used to play. There's plenty of info about dwarf clans and everything.
You should have a think about how you will be reacting to tieflings :D
Yeah I have been doing NPC's in DnDBeyond and it's true , you can't copy paste the info out of the pdf. Very frustrating!
Well I guess it's not so bad to leave the paizo site to get to the stats. But still, nothing like having everything on the paizo site.
There are other places to stat up characters in 5E; many thingies to google, and fine for NPCs.
Ift, god of thieves, suits Bez just fine. ;)
NPC's
Ambrose is a Professor of Arcanum at the Endhome Academy. A high-blooded elf, he has never missed an opportunity to belittle Melira for her learning disability.
Ambrose
Holly never learned to cast a single spell but her thirst for knowledge won Melira over. She teaches world history.
Corrin is a human paladin of Muir. He is getting a bit gray. Melira wonders if she’ll see him again.
Hadzranl is a half blind gnome who tutors Saendithas in chronurgy.
Rhendlynnth D'Voth is a half-drow evoker who bullies Saen.
Elua Furrach this red-hared Firbolg priestess of the old ways loved Faidh but knew she could not stand in the way of the mission of a tattooed Guardian.
Bolga the Hermit is Faidhs mentor in the Lost Lands. Lame in the leg.
Vanni the Spider is the daughter of Vex n' Bez’s dear mum. Tutors nobles, finds the brothers work to be messy.
Boh’kul is the proprietor of Boh’kul’s Garden, purveyor of spiced drinks. He doesn’t fight anymore. Much.
Mystagogue Lain - Elven caretaker of the family shrine, well mannered and kindly. Vex will not target.
Captain Renthroft - Head of the Watch in Endhome, seeks to stamp out delivery services, at odds with the Crwth. Loyal to the Noble Houses. Be has been in and out of his office, Vex keeps a log on him.
The Cold Laird - Crime boss with connections to undeath and to Noble Houses. Bez has stolen from them.
Polk Mudgecudgel - Caretaker of the Gaspars, Vex removed him by framing him. Currently jailed.
Balgrish D’Voth - Brother of Rhendlyth, rival of Saendithas. A hired duelist enlisted by Noble houses to settle disputes by duel, thwarting Vex’s blackmail efforts.
The Dandy Bindles - Bez and Vex’s Delivery Service. Bez is a quick-witted thief, Vex is a blackmailer and thug.
The Crwth - The larger guild to which delivery services in Endhome pay membership dues and send representative leadership.
====
Akkramar is a Forge Cleric, so I am thinking one of the gods with the Artificer sphere, though I do not see him as a LG character.
Where can I find more info about the Gods themselves Grimmy?
And yes, I would need some more dwarven lore - concerns as a society/race, enmities, current status in the world, relations to neighboring kingdoms/races stuff like that.
Like I said before, I would like to play him as a conventional in attitude, but unconventional in thought dwarf. More concerned about human settlements than usual. Perhaps that is what drove him to travel?
For some strange reason, I am unable to dot Gameplay...
Albion they made a huge setting book with all that stuff. You might be from the Stoneheart's or the Blackrock Mountains.
Mountain dwarves tend to stay within their mountain dwellings, though some do travel for trade or adventure to cities not far from their people. They tend to be taller than hill dwarves, with pale skin, black or gray hair, and full, thick beards.
It is said that the mountain dwarves were originally all part of a single clan whose greatest king was Karam Ezun the Wyrmkiller. Since those ancient days, however, the mountain dwarves have divided into nine Great Mountain Clans. These are Clan Craenog of the central Stoneheart Mountains; Clan Ironskull of the Blackrock Mountains; Clan Targ, now a scattered folk, originally from the Forlorn Mountains; Clan Koth, also scattered, from somewhere in the Stoneheart Mountains; Clan Krazzadak, who lost their home in the Shengotha Plateau when ice covered it, who live yet in the Stonehearts and their capital of Abad Durahai; Clan Flammeaxte of the Deepfells; Clan Bulghoi of the Kal’Iugus Mountains; and Clans Duhnbeyl and Tusov, whose locations are uncertain.
Mountain dwarves generally do not have good relations with any other folk, even their hill dwarf cousins. However, the Silverhelm Clan of the northern Lyre Valley in the Stoneheart foothills, a part of the Great Mountain Clan Krazzadak, is an anomaly in that they are on good terms with the humans of Bard’s Gate.
Mountain dwarves are the most dominant military and political force in the Stoneheart Mountains, though the hobgoblins occupying the citadels along the eastern edge of the Stoneheart Mountains and the neighboring Starcrag Mountains also vie for supremacy. Several dwarven clans hold sway over this vast region, with Clan Craenog being generally recognized as the strongest and most influential of these, though the other clans would certainly disagree. Although none of the mountain dwarves hold humans and elves in high regard, several of these clans at least tolerate their former adversaries.
In the northern regions of the Stonehearts, the only vestiges of civilization are a handful of small mountain dwarf villages, hobgoblin enclaves, and goblin cave complexes. Ogres, trolls, yetis, and other monstrous denizens also inhabit these tall, frozen peaks. Clan Tusov wields nominal control over the northern section of the Stoneheart Mountains, though its influence wanes significantly outside the friendly confines of their capital city of Icarros.
The more hospitable portions of the central Stoneheart Mountains host numerous mountain dwarf villages and goblinoid settlements. The territories of four mountain dwarf clans overlap across this area. Clan Duhnbeyl rules over the Spine of Fire and portions of the Vingotha and Telegotha Plateaus. After centuries of civil disturbances and political machinations, this resurgent clan’s power is rapidly spreading from the epicenter of Halmarr, its political capital. Clan Koth wields its magical and technological might over the western Stoneheart Mountains. These dwarves seem content with their holdings, striving to maintain the status quo rather than confronting neighboring clans. Clan Craenog stands on the frontline against the hobgoblin citadels of Exor, Bonehollow, and Smashed Skull. From its strategic vantage point of Erod Flan, Clan Craenog boasts the largest and most experienced military force in the Stoneheart Mountains. They also claim the Feirgotha Plateau and most of the Eragotha Plateau for their own. After their expulsion from the Shengotha Plateau 500 years ago, Clan Krazzadak’s foothold in the central Stoneheart Mountains has substantially diminished. Other than its capital city of Abad Durahai, the clan tenuously clings to a few isolated towns and villages scattered throughout the region. Despite Clan Krazzadak’s decline in the central Stoneheart Mountains, this clan dominates the southern Stoneheart Mountains. Only the cities of Dun Eamon and Alesardin rival their power in this region. The former community on the western edge of the Stoneheart Mountains boasts a predominately human population while the latter city of Alesardin is almost exclusively inhabited by the svirfneblin.
Warfare is a near constant reality throughout much of the Stoneheart Mountains. Goblins and hobgoblins almost perpetually struggle against their mountain dwarf neighbors for supremacy. Although rival clans are apt to fight each other when an ideal opportunity presents itself, a loose alliance exists among the mountain dwarves. Secret “high-ways” carved into the highest elevations serve as clandestine networks to connect the cities and towns of opposing clans. So-called “low-ways” cut below the ground link the individual clans’ citadels together. However, goblins and hobgoblins are not the only creatures to menace the indigenous dwarves. Old myths and legends claim the Stoneheart Mountains themselves are not just inanimate earth and stone. The tales say the mountains are living entities with minds of their own. Other stories speak of long-forgotten deities waging a titanic struggle against an unspeakable evil on the land that eventually became the Stoneheart Mountains. In this version, the divine being’s dying essence coalesced into the rocks that form the chain. Not surprisingly, adventurers frequently scour the mountains searching for evidence to support one or more of these theories, though to date, no one has found anything to substantiate these accounts.
The Blackrock Mountains are home to the Ironskull clan of mountain dwarves, the most powerful of the mountain clans commonly encountered by the humans of Akados. It is said their ancestors moved here in ages past, after the original dwarves arriving in the Lost Lands divided into the Great Mountain Clans. The Ironskulls are known as renowned giant fighters with noteworthy heroic sons such as Dramen Ironskull (who was among the first of the Akadonian peoples to encounter the Xha’en) and Grimmbold Ironskull (who battled giants among the Forlorn Mountains). Its most famous scion perhaps was legendary Old Thane Col, who ruled the clan for well over 250 years until the venerable thane disappeared at sea 100 years ago with a rare dwarven armada as he sought to plumb the depths of the fabled Dragon Temple of the island of West Talon.
The ancestral hold of the Ironskull clan is Iron Hall, located deep in the Blackrock Mountains. From here they rule what has become known as the Iron Kingdom of Dorriden (a corruption of a compound word that approximately means “dwarven citadel”). They ensure the safety of key mountain passes but otherwise leave most of the mountaintops and vales to the creatures that choose to settle there, so long as they do not threaten the dwarven realm.
The Barony of Baile is a recent addition to the kingdom, one made through treaty rather than conquest. Feeling abandoned by Foere and at the whim of the mad rulers of the Principality of Olduvar, the baron of Baile came to the dwarves seeking a treaty or other arrangement for his barony’s protection. Recognizing threats to the Barony of Baile as a potential threat to their own trade, and impressed by the baron’s concern for his people, High Thane Thornir and the clan council offered him an equal seat on the clan council in exchange for his oath of fealty to the Iron Kingdom, an oath he was more than happy to give.
The newly expanded kingdom suffered a few growing pains and some increased tensions, but as time has passed, the relationship between the established dwarven kingdom and its new, predominantly human “clan” has improved to the benefit of both.
Of late, a great red wyrm has been seen flying among the peaks of the Blackrock Mountains, circling near the entrances to the Iron Kingdom but never landing. A few fear that this beast may be from the legendary Dragon Temple of West Talon, come to avenge some insult given by Old Thane Col years ago.
It's kind of a dry book in a way but very complete.
Clan Krazzadak
Today, Abad Durahai is the capital of the dwarven Clan Krazzadak and the most populous settlement in the Stoneheart Mountains. For much of its existence, however, it was a bit of a backwater on the outskirts of the Shengotha Plateau. Then, 500 years ago, the snows came and buried the Shengotha Plateau and the old capital of Bryn Tuk Thull under a glacier of ice 500 feet deep. The dwarves were forced to flee what became known as the Stoneheart Ice Plateau, with many seeking refuge in Abad Durahai, the nearest Krazzadak settlement.
The architects who transformed the rapidly expanding Abad Durahai from a small community into a bustling city incorporated the cavern’s natural stone walls into their plans, while using dwarf-made devices to further subdivide the space into smaller structures and buildings. Stone doors encased in bronze and embossed with mithral and silver grant access to the city proper. Networks of tunnels branch out from the main city and burrow into the rock and stone beneath Abad Durahai.
Abad Durahai was founded approximately 3,000 years ago by a family of Clan Krazzadak. Arriving from their nearby homeland in the Shengotha Plateau, they found a complex of natural caverns, and, more importantly, a vein of mithral. Many came here to mine, and soon it was a small but growing community.
When the glacier came to the Shengotha Plateau, Abad Durahai was a natural place for refugees to head. It was far too small to house so many, however, so architects quickly set to designing an expansion of the natural caverns, planning a much larger city and citadel. Tunnels and chambers were dug and soon filled with those seeking refuge, at first temporarily, but they soon settled in and became permanent residents.
The last king of Clan Krazzadak was lost with the coming of the ice, so a new king was declared from among the surviving royalty. The new king, Argrim Longhair, provided the leadership the shocked and stricken dwarves desperately needed, and soon their new capital was a thriving community. Argrim’s grandson Thorgrim is the current king, or as the dwarves say, the King in Exile, as they intend one day to return to Bryn Tuk Thull and reclaim their legacy and homeland.
Despite the clan’s perseverance, the many hardships heaped upon these dwarves give them a glum disposition and a suspicious outlook toward others.
The Battle of Hummaemidon and the destruction of their homeland
on the Shengotha Plateau causes many of Abad Durahai’s residents to take a lackadaisical approach to religion. Among trusted company, some dwarves sarcastically quip that “they will give to the gods, what the gods gave them — nothing.” Nonetheless, roughly half of the city’s dwarves still pay homage to their patron deities. Foremost of these is Barator, the God of the Forge. While this lost god has fallen out of favor with the other dwarven clans, the Krazzadaks maintain a strong affinity for him. Indeed, Abad Durahai hosts the god’s exalted high altar.
With hostile neighbors to the north and south, Abad Durahai’s commercial partners remain limited. The city’s mines produce significant quantities of diamonds and mithral as well as iron and silver ore that they export to other dwarven clans or to merchants in Bard’s Gate. Unlike most of the great mountain clans, the dwarves of Clan Krazzadak deal directly with humans and other humanoids when absolutely necessary, though they still prefer dealing with non-human middlemen when possible. In addition to selling raw materials, Abad Durahai’s craftsmen enjoy a stellar reputation among the buying public. Weapons and armor forged in the Temple of Barator rank among the most coveted in all of Akados. Many circles refer to these valuable items as “Durahai Steel.” Genuine products fetch a handsome price in many cities and towns throughout Akados, though their value also spurs counterfeiters to manufacture cheap knockoffs of the real article.
Over the past five centuries, Abad Durahai has engaged in multiple skirmishes with the svirfneblin city of Alesardin to the south and the barbegazi to the north. Some residents refer to this geopolitical stalemate as the “Gnomish Vice,” a reference to being sandwiched between two factions of equally devious gnomish offshoots. Not surprisingly, the dwarves of Abad Durahai have no love for gnomes of any ilk and hold them in equal disregard as humans. While the dwarves can muster a far greater military force than either of their potential opponents, they are also reluctant to fight these foes on their terms in their own backyards. Abad Durahai’s leadership is content to maintain the status quo on these fronts rather than go to war against either adversary.
King Thorgrim enjoys widespread popularity within Clan Krazzadak, though the same cannot be said for their ambivalent relations with Clan Craenog. The King in Exile endeavors to change this situation, but his diplomatic efforts have generated little progress on this front. A handful of voices within his court suggests normalizing relations with Bard’s Gate. However, this tiny minority never presses the issue beyond a few comments about the potential economic benefits of such an arrangement. If the mood sours, the person immediately drops the matter. To date, the king shows no signs of softening his stances toward humans — or any other non-dwarves for that matter.
King Thorgrim governs in a stern yet fair manner. The monarch personally presides over all civil and criminal matters within the city. Thorgrim enjoys a strong reputation for honesty and impartiality. However, he rarely shows mercy when rendering a judgment or passing sentence. In his mind, logic, reason, and the letter of the law take precedence over personal feelings. His harsh attitude spurs some grumbling among the friends and families of the aggrieved, yet so far no one has openly spoken against the city’s ruler.
For a city of its size, Abad Durahai’s troop strength is comparatively
small. In an emergency, the king can field an army of roughly 1,800 trained and experienced soldiers. However, only 600 soldiers are typically on active duty at any time. The city instead devotes much of its energy and industry to supporting each individual soldier with the best instruction and technological advancements rather than mass producing equipment and conscripting desperate young men and women. Clan Krazzadak believes one highly skilled, motivated, and well-equipped infantryman is worth more than 10 frightened, poorly-armed civilians pressed into service. Equally adept at close-quarters fighting with an axe or firing a crossbow from a distance, a dwarf in the king’s service is a versatile killing machine. During their last major engagement with the svirfneblin in 3508 I.R. at the Skirmish of the Iron Intersection, King Thorgrim’s charges killed 88 deep gnomes while sustaining only 14 casualties in a pitched subterranean battle.
Abad Durahai need not look far to find enemies at its gates. The svirfneblin city of Alesardin relishes an opportunity for revenge against their hated foes. Turning north, the dwarves would conversely jump at the opportunity to land a devastating blow to the barbegazi inhabiting their former homeland on the Shengotha Plateau or exact some retribution against the ice gnomes. Human incursions as well as territorial disputes with Clan Craenog also periodically challenge Clan Krazzadak’s hegemony over the region.
Oooooph! That is a lot of info - I will need some time to go over all of it :D
Yeah I mean I wasn’t sure how to select what to show you. It’s such a big book.
Anyone else had trouble dotting gameplay?
I'm just looking to start simple - from what I have read so far I think a Mountain dwarf sounds perfect. I like the idea of a displaced/'kinda homeless' clan.
I can envision a lonesome clan, who still stubbornly refuses to establish any decent contact with the surrounding regions. I can see Akkramar getting pissed at it. Maybe he/the clan uncovers something that would make sense to share with others, yet they refuse to do so. And the stubborn cleric thinks otherwise.
Much like you had initially suggested Grimmy ;)
I will dig through the info for something that matches, but any suggestions are welcome.
Can you remind me what I suggested ? I do not recall.
I only remember giving you an hook to connect him in to the adventure scenario , but you said it wasn’t a fit.
I did see the hook Grimmy, just wasn’t ‘up my alley’ so to speak, since it really does not match very well my idea for the character, motivations to move away from the clan, etc - should have responded then ;)
Not sure I am not excited about my dwarf priest, but a ranger with his beast companion feels more unique in this group.
...you're a solid frontliner...We already have one of those though.
Melira, how is your character dealing ranged damage?
Can you remind me what I suggested ? I do not recall.
I only remember giving you an hook to connect him in to the adventure scenario , but you said it wasn’t a fit.
I don’t remember that :P
I had a strong hook to connect the dwarf cleric, I mentioned it earlier you might have missed.
Albion:A demon has been ravaging the clans. It was heard to brag "even those templars above ground could not contain me forever in their prison of glass!". You have come up to the surface to see if you can learn the means to imprison him
Oh ok yeah, that hook would be very good . I had thought you were not in favor of it. That will work very well.
Anyone else had trouble dotting gameplay?
Yeah. When I click "submit post" it just gives me a preview instead.
Thanks for stating up Ambrose for me.
Weird.
Yeah when i made the first post it asked me for a "subject" line which I don't remember seeing before.
And i had to hit submit a couple times before it went through.
But how did Beziriphas succesfully dot?
Might have to make a new thread if it doesn’t sort itself out .
Saendithas and Faith, have you tried yet?
I just dotted. You need to truly have faith. :p
Try asking web help maybe?
Dot worked today - all good ;)
Hoping my intro wasn't too much, ask typing on your phone sucks
It was fantastic. Great job.
I'll set the other scenes soon so you aren't on the spot all by yourself. just getting in gear here slowly.
Akkramar I got your PM.
I have no problem with short backstories or a simple sketch. I totally believe in that style, and I support it.
No worries dude.
Just posted the stuff from the books in case it concerns you.
As for appearing in the story can you clarify one thing for me, not to go in circles but I am still not clear about it. Can you confirm, are you saying you are into the hook about the demon? If so I have an on-ramp for him into the adventure as soon as you are ready.
If not, no problem. we can totally figure out another plan, it's DND its not that hard.
I am into the hook about the demon ;)
Oh ok cool and is Akkramar ready to roll? Stats n all?
Mostly yeah - I should have the final touches done tomorrow. But since I went with the Equipment set, he is mostly done.
I dotted and deleted, so I show up on both the player and characters lists.
Yeah that was a slick move Saendithas.
I will move the calendar to intro where other PC’s are soon.
Yeah that was a slick move Saendithas.
LOL Would love to take credit for it, but I learned it in another game I'm playing in.
I dotted and deleted, so I show up on both the player and characters lists.
Cool trick.
I got the pleasure of starting this thing off, Go me !
Great job. We’ll get you some help soon.
I will move the calendar to intro where other PC’s are soon.
This was supposed to say camera not calendar. Haha.
Not that that makes much more sense :p
I dotted and deleted, so I show up on both the player and characters lists.Cool trick.
I guess I executed it incorrectly. Maybe I closed my computer too quickly after pressing delete?
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This is why Saendithas has to tutor you :p
ROFL
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I’ll set up the scene in endhome over the weekend so the other PC’s can start posting.
Akkramar and Fiadh can interact with each other now any time, they are in the same place.
They may have questions for the priest and so on.
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A friend of mine really did have a lavender turmeric tonic and it was amazing. Ok, I looked it up--lavender chamomile with a dash of turmeric (I think).
No worries.
Similar thing I forgot to bring my laptop charger with me to housesit my brothers pets.
Posting is pretty annoying on phone but not impossible. I’ll be a little light til I can get my hands on a MacBook charger.
In case it's unclear, "who would have done such a thing" is about the destruction of the book.
Very clear !
This morning during yoga I lost consciousness and fell and cut my head! I have to get stitches and see what they say , because I do have a history of seizures.
I feel fine now though.
Will try to sneak a post in if I get the chance.
Ouch - hope your noggin is fine DMG.
Loving the posts and characters everyone, fully invested already :) need to bring my A game when Vex joins proceedings :S